Etymologically
Log in

preserve

This is the current revision of this entry, as edited by bogdan on 16 October 2026 at 12:58. This address is a permanent link to this version.
Changes in this edit History

Pronunciation

  • IPA: /pɹəˈzɜːv/ (UK); /pɹəˈzɝv/ (US)[1]

Etymology

It is Middle English preserven, borrowed from Old French preserver and Anglo-Latin preservare,[2][3] from Medieval Latin praeservāre, from Late Latin praeservāre (“to guard beforehand; to observe”),[4][5] from prae (“before”) and servāre (“to keep, guard”).[2][3][6]

Earliest recorded meaning

To keep safe from harm: 1375 in the OED, 1392 in Barnhart.[7][2]

Semantic evolution

To keep alive or in existence is from 1390.[7] To prepare fruit or meat by sugar, salt or pickling is from 1579, and to keep organic bodies from decay from 1613.[7] To keep game for private hunting or fishing is from 1612.[7][5] The noun first meant a preservative (1550s);[3][7] fruit preserved with sugar, jam, is from about 1600,[3][7] and a protected area for game from 1807, extended to any activity reserved for a particular group (a male preserve).[3][7][8]

Timeline

  • 1375 – to keep safe.[7]
  • 1390 – to keep alive.[7]
  • 1552 – a preservative (noun).[7]
  • 1579 – to preserve food.[7]
  • c. 1600 – preserved fruit.[3][7]
  • 1807 – a game preserve.[3][7]

Modern meaning

Verb

  1. To keep in its original or existing state; to maintain.
  2. To keep safe from harm or injury; to protect.
  3. To treat food to prevent it from decaying, as by pickling or cooking with sugar.
  4. To keep game or fish for private hunting.

Noun

  1. (often plural) Fruit preserved with sugar; jam.
  2. An area where game or fish are protected.
  3. An activity or area reserved for certain people: a male preserve.

Word family

  • preservability
  • preservable
  • preserver
  • preservation
  • cryopreserve
  • unpreserved

References

  1. ^ Wiktionary, the free dictionary, https://en.wiktionary.org
  2. ^ a b c Barnhart, Robert K. (1988), The Barnhart Dictionary of Etymology
  3. ^ a b c d e f g Harper, Douglas. Online Etymology Dictionary, https://www.etymonline.com
  4. ^ Merriam-Webster Unabridged Dictionary (2024), online ed., Springfield, Mass.: Merriam-Webster
  5. ^ a b Hoad, T. F., ed. (1986), The Concise Oxford Dictionary of English Etymology, Oxford: Clarendon Press
  6. ^ Pearsall, Judy, ed. (1998), The New Oxford Dictionary of English, Oxford: Clarendon Press
  7. ^ a b c d e f g h i j k l m Simpson, J. A.; Weiner, E. S. C., eds. (1989), The Oxford English Dictionary, 2nd ed., Oxford: Clarendon Press
  8. ^ Collins English Dictionary (2023), Glasgow: HarperCollins